Books

Beer for Dummies, 2nd Edition
By Marty Nachel with Steve Ettlinger
John Wiley & Sons, Inc., January 2012, $22.99

Thought “beer for dummies” meant a 30-rack of yellow swill? Think again. It may not have the fancy infographics and lean look of other installments on the beer-book shelf, but Beer for Dummies makes good use of the extra pages that come with the “Dummies” series format. Trivia even the most learned of beer geeks may find interesting—e.g., in England, condemned prisoners were given a cup of ale on their way to their execution, or that Martin Luther drank strong beer to preserve his health while fasting—break up long chapters on topics other books gloss over, like cleaning and storing glassware, the history of CAMRA and a rundown of German mixed beer drinks. A fun book to flip through, or to reference when you get into it with a fellow beer geek over, say, what exactly constitutes a kosher beer.

Moleskine Beer Journal
Moleskine, January 2012, $19.95

The value of journal-keeping lies in the end product: when re-reading each entry brings you back to that one pub, that one beer, the one you may have forgotten about if you hadn’t asked the bartender for a pen so you could scribble some notes about where you were and what was delighting your palate at the moment. How many pints disappear once the glass is empty? The Moleskine interpretation of a beer journal steers clear of kitsch. It’s divided into five sections—much like a day-planner—that, for example, let you comment on an individual beer (with spaces designated for producer, color, style, bought-on dates, etc.) or a bar (fill in the contact info, beers sold, your favorite beers, etc.). Spice it up with some classy labels (included), and you’ll have a jazzy keepsake of your best (and worst) beer-drinking experiences. ■